The other day, I wrote a little about cognitive distortions. These are unhelpful thoughts that we all tend to have, that are not rational, and can likely cause negative feelings. Most of us do not pay attention to the way we are talking to ourselves; our internal dialogue. Identifying these unhelpful thought patterns is a first step in feeling better. https://www.drericafels.com/building-pathways-for-positive-change/2019/1/16/intro-to-the-cbt-perspective

Today, I present an antidote. Check it out and check yourself!

David Burns is arguably the father of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy and has some amazing books and resources to help people with various mood related concerns. Check out his website, blogs, articles, and podcasts to learn more! https://feelinggood.com/tag/fifty-ways-to-untwist-your-thinking/

As always, if you are experiencing severe distress, any suicidal or homicidal ideation, or anything you need help to cope with, please call 911 or seek professional support as soon as possible.

Today I’ll talk a little about Cognitive Behavioral Therapy. Regarding the cognitive piece, the idea is that our thoughts, affect what we do (behavior), and how we feel. One can intervene at the thought or behavior level, to create a change in functioning. Thoughts are extremely powerful and have the capacity to impact how we feel, what we do, and how we present ourselves to be in the world. One way to keep our thoughts in check, is to start paying attention to how we talk to ourselves. It’s very common to have distortions in our thinking, that impact us in ways that we could never imagine. Today, when something is bothering you, pay attention to your thoughts and see if you can identify any of these common distortions in your thinking. Raising awareness about these common, cognitive distortions, and checking your “self-talk,” might be all you need to do, to have a better day.